Draft device.



. H. BARBER.

DRAFT DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR, 1 1912.

1,042,523. Patented 001:. 29, 1912.

HIE/AM BARBER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

DRAFT DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented (Pct. 29, 1912.

Application filed March 11, 1912. Serial No. 683,129.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HIRAM BARBER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in Cook county, State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Draft Devices, of which the following is a specification.

My device relates to improvements in draft devices, in which the ends of the evener are equipped with a coiled draft spring reciprocating upon a rod in combination with a hood reciprocating thereon and actuating said spring and adapted to a connection with the whiffletrees by means of a suitable clevis; the objects being, to minimize the vibrations of the draft and to equalize the shock or jar thereof as between the shoulders of the draft-animal and the fixed point of attachment on the vehicle. I accomplish these objects by means of the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a plan-view of the evener and showing the draft-device attached to both ends and a portion of a whiflietree connected to one of the clevises. Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of same. Fig. 3 is the hood in perspective, showing the hidden contour by a dotted line.

In detail the evener E is adapted to be connected with the tongue by means of a draw-bolt and hammerstrap in the usual way. At the ends the evener is equipped with the elongated collar C, the end of the evener being substantially flush with the end of the collar, the latter having a flat surface corresponding substantially with the thickness of the evener and having sufficient apertures indicated by dotted lines between the sides of the evener and the walls of the collar to permit the insertion of the free ends of the bracket F so as to permit connection to the end of the evener by means of the bolt L. The bracket F is riveted to the collar and is traversed longitudinally by the rod R, which is held in place by a nut on the rear end. Before the insertion of the rod R, a spiral spring S is loosely strung thereon, the draft-hood D which has been slipped on the bracket F before the same is bolted to the end of the evener is moved to the rear end of the bracket F so as to receive the loose contact of the spring S after which the rod R is projected through the aperture A of the draw-hood D and a hole in the rear end of the bracket B and is fastened with the nut. The clevis K is connected with the drawhood D by means of the bolt B passing through the port P.

The position of the drawhood D as shown in Fig. 1 makes a support by means of a sliding contact between the outer surface of the bracket F and the inner surface of the wall IV of the drawhood, and provides a positive direction to the movement of the hood as it is caused to compress the spring by the draft of the animal, and prevents any binding or jamming. This adaptiveness is also facilitated by the manner in which the clevis K loosely straddles the bracket and insures a constant direction of the strain of draft in adjusting itself to the changing position of the end of the evener.

What I claim is:

In draft devices, a retaining collar attached to the ends of the evener and provided with expanded projections, a rectangular bracket riveted to said collar, and the outer leg of which is adapted as a slide and which is provided with two free ends which pass between the sides of the evener and the adjoining walls of said bracket and are seseoured to the said evener, a rod which traverses the said bracket longitudinally, a coiled spring loosely strung upon said rod, a hood reciprocating upon said rod and slide and contacting with the rear end of said spring and adapted to actuate the same and a clevis straddling said bracket and movably attached to said hood, substantially as described.

Signed this 9th day of March, A. D. 1912, in the presence of two witnesses.

DAVID J. LYON, C. D. LEE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

